Dear GhanaWeb: My dad abused my mother till she left the marriage

Dear GhanaWeb, Fifteen years ago, my mother made the painful decision to walk away from a marriage that had lasted more than twelve years. Everyone blamed her. They said she was destroying her home because my father was "just being a man." They warned my brother and me not to follow her, saying she would never be able to provide for us and our dreams would die with her. My father refused to let us go, so we stayed with him. We believed he was the one who made life possible. We couldn't have been more wrong. Within weeks, everything changed. We were constantly hungry. Our clothes were dirty, and many days we missed school because there was no money, or my father simply wasn't around to give us any. We were once healthy and happy children, but we quickly became thin and neglected. Then another woman started visiting the house. She only acted kind when my father was around, but treated us differently the moment he left. Our teachers and neighbors noticed our condition and started asking questions. Somehow, word reached my mother. One afternoon after school, she appeared unexpectedly, took my brother and me with her, and sent a message to my father that she had come for her things. We left with almost nothing, not even a change of clothes, but we never regretted that decision. She had already prepared new clothes and everything we needed. I thought my father would come looking for us, but he never did. The next time he reached out was when he was only a few months away from death. He asked to see us and begged us to tell my mother to forgive him. Two months later, he passed away. My mother became both our mother and father. She worked tirelessly and sacrificed everything to educate us until I reached Level 100 at the university. Sadly, she also passed away two years after my father. Before she died, I finally learned why she left the marriage. My father had been cheating on her and abusing her. Despite everything, she endured it for years and only left when she could no longer continue. As her health declined, she noticed the anger I carried toward my father and pleaded with me to let it go. She begged me to forgive him. I still struggle with that. Part of me believes that if not for everything she suffered, she might still be alive today. I am trying to heal from the trauma, but forgiveness feels like the hardest battle of all. If you were in my shoes, would you be able to forgive your father, or would the pain be too deep to let go? FG/EB Meanwhile, watch as Jeffery Nortey shares his career journey from comedy to content creation Source: www.ghanaweb.com
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